Primary Principals To Vote On Pay Offer

Wellington * Primary principals will be meeting
throughout the country to consider a pay offer negotiated by
their union, NZEI Te Riu Roa.

Key aspects of the offer
are:

· An average pay increase of 8% for primary
principals

· An average pay increase of 13% for principals
of special schools.

· A 33% increase in the allowance
for principals of Normal Schools. The allowance rises from
$1636 a year to $2000. These schools work with Colleges of
Education in training students to become teachers.

· The
new collective agreement to have a term of nine months from
August 1 to April 30, 2004.

· Establishment of a working
party on professional growth for principals involving
representatives from NZEI Te Riu Roa, the Ministry of
Education and the New Zealand School Trustees Association
(NZSTA). It would look at how to develop the professional
skills principals need to be effective leaders of their
schools as well as the initiatives required to support
professional growth such as paid study leave and sabbatical
leave. It would also examine principals' workload. The
working party would produce a report with recommendations to
the Minister of Education by March next
year.

· Establishment of a working party to look at how
principals are appointed again involving NZEI Te Riu Roa,
the Ministry of Education and NZSTA. It would develop
guidelines for the hiring of principals that follow a best
practice process. The working party would deliver a report
and recommendations to the Minister of Education no later
than December 1 this year.

· Agreement from 2004 that
when schools are merged the position of principal for the
new school will be advertised. NZEI Te Riu Roa and the
Ministry of Education would meet to discuss mergers that are
underway to sort out an appointment process for the affected
schools before the mergers take place next year."

There
are 2026 primary principals covered by the collective
agreement. They will be voting on the offer at meetings
throughout the country starting on August 21 and ending on
September 10.

"The negotiating team is recommending that
primary principals accept this offer," says NZEI Te Riu Roa
National President, Bruce Adin.

"It would deliver an
average pay increase of 8%. It would also enable the union
to sit down with the Ministry of Education and the School
Trustees Association in two separate working parties to
address some major issues for principals, professional
development and workload and the way principals are
appointed," says Bruce Adin.

NZEI Te Riu Roa members work in every community in New Zealand, leading and advocating for quality public education.

We are the 50,000 principals, teachers and support staff who work in primary, area and secondary schools as well as early childhood centres, special education and school advisory services. We come together as NZEI Te Riu Roa - New Zealand's largest education union, a Treaty based organisation and a powerful advocate for quality public education.

We have the most important job in New Zealand - educating for the future.

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